Monday, August 30, 2010

29er Full Suspension Sneak Peek...

Here are some sneak peeks as to what the future Banshee full suspension 29er is potentially going to look like. The as yet un-named bike (well it was named, but the name was then used by another manufacturer), will be a 130mm travel 29er designed for the new generation 29er rider. Gone are the super steep angles and awkward geometry, in comes a slacker more flickable and confidence inspiring geometry combined with a brand new highly efficient full suspension platform, optimised for 29er gearing ratios, running on fully sealed bearing and grade 5 titanium axles. The geometry is adjustable and dropouts are interchangeable between 135x10 and 150x12 options, plus it will be 30.9mm seat tube and there will be cable guides for remote, and a full 1.5" head tube. There will be ample tire clearance for 29x2.5" tires and it can cope with up to 160mm forks (once readily avaliable) although is really focused on 120-140mm forks.

So I'm about to head off to Euro Bike in Germany, but had promised to post up some info before I went... don't worry there will be a lot more (further images from other angles, geometry, tech info etc... oh and yes there will be a hanger!) to follow in the next month. This is just a sneak peek to satisfy some curiosities out there, and to get some early feedback on the overall design before geometry and details are put out there for feedback.

Lower / Slacker Setting:Higher / Steeper Setting:If you are a 29er fan, then please let me know what you think at this early stage. I'm always interested to hear feedback and opinions.

I think the specs of this bike sound awesome. I like the dropout options, tire clearance, 1.5 headtube, and I think the travel at 130mm hits a nice spot. Depending on the fork thats on there, and build, it can be set up for a variety of riders and terrain. I'd like to see the chainstays length in the mid seventeen range. Looking forward to the final product.

Hey Keith, Stan in Edinburgh here. I think I'll be ready for a frame like this by 2012.I just got a wee tour of some "off piste" stuff outta Innerleithen and the potential for hooning down thru steep, off camber roots is waaaay higher than I thought possible.The Paradox was gobbling it up and a frame like this would be real nice on my ageing bones...

Very nice, Changing the Geo at the dropouts makes a lot of sense. In the Spitfire the leverage ratio change too much. The droputs looks too big but I'm all about Funtion.

The Bearings, Titanium Axles, and the the Lower Anti-squat are very very veeeeeeeeery nice too. I'm trying to find more Cons but I can't find any. Maybe there is too much CNC in the rear so I hope that you can keep the weight as low as possible.

This seems to be a promising design Keith. I'd have only one small advice or wish. More room for mud :-). I just returned from a small enduro trip where we had to enjoy hundred meters of muddy orgy, and my Rune was the only with blocked rear wheel due to small room for mud. Especially at the lower link pivot.Pavol, Slovakia.

Seat Post height should be just what you are looking at for all sizes.

1.5" head tube is a standars traditional 1.5" so campatible with widest range of headsets.

front derailleur is direct mount, will do some testing before we finalise exactly what standard we recommend.

there will be cable guides for hammerschmidt.

Anon:Reason I went for 1.5" head tube is that it just allows the most flexibility in headset / angle reducers / fork steerer options. I'm just giving the customers what the majority of them were asking for.

2nd anon... there is more mud clearance on this bike than on the rune even with 29x2.5" tires. The new linkage gives me a bit more room to play with.

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